Minority Gifted Education
- Most students identified as gifted are Asian and White
- African American and Latino students are disporportionately under-identified
African American
- Adeptness in visual art activities
- High nonverbal fluency and originality
- High creative productivity in small groups
- High creativity in movement, dance, and other physical acitvities
- Use of language rich in imagery
Hispanic Culture
- Follows orders
- Does not lead
- Obeys, cooperates, submissive
- Doesn’t meddle in adult affairs
- Doesn’t judge or criticize others
- Opposing cultural values will put student at odds with significant others (family, culture, etc...)
Navajo Culture
- Quietness
- Non-competitive
- Non-assertive
- Does not show leadership qualities in public
Challenges Faced
Background
- Doublely overlooked
- Less likely to be identified by teacher
- Lack of multicultural classroom Impacts sense of belonging and validations
- Difficulty succeeding in predominately white gifted programs that are heavily verbal in content and focus
- So few like them in their classes
- Choose not to participate for fear of "acting white" and the perception that participating will be viewed as a rejection of one's culture and resulting in potential social isolation
Suggested Interventions
Improved Identification
- Diverse selection committes
- Better train classroom teachers
- Mulitple assessment tools
- Alternate testing methods
- Tests in native languages
- Improve selection methods
- Create more culturally responsive learning environments
- Preparatory programs
- Better inform parents, teachers, and community